BIOGRAPHY

Yoshiki is a composer, classically-trained pianist, rock drummer, and the leader of the rock group X Japan.

X Japan has sold 30 million singles and albums combined, and sold-out the 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome a record 18 times. Now the band's popularity is spreading throughout the world, with a sold-out World Tour, performances in North America, Europe, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.

In 2017, Yoshiki was chosen as the first ever Japanese male to star on the cover of Vogue Japan.

In 1999, Yoshiki was asked to compose and perform a piano concerto with a 77-piece orchestra to celebrate the tenth year of the Emperor of Japan's reign.

In 2005, Yoshiki composed the theme song and conducted the orchestra for the opening ceremony of the World Expo.

In 2010, Yoshiki launched the non-profit organization Yoshiki Foundation America, a 501(c)(3), which supports various charitable organizations, including the Grammy Foundation and the Make-A-Wish Foundation, as well as Japanese earthquake victims.

In 2012, Yoshiki composed the official theme song for the Golden Globe Awards.

In 2013, Yoshiki released his classical solo album, Yoshiki Classical, which included works co-produced and arranged by acclaimed Beatles producer Sir George Martin. The album debuted at #1 on the iTunes Classical Music chart in 10 countries, and featured performances by Yoshiki as both the composer and pianist with the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

In 2014, Yoshiki performed his first Yoshiki Classical World Tour, with sold-out shows in 10 countries (United States, Mexico, Russia, Germany, France, United Kingdom, China, Thailand, Taiwan, and Japan).

That same year, X Japan headlined New York’s Madison Square Garden.

In 2015, Yoshiki introduced the Yoshikimono collection of rock-themed kimonos, inspired by his family’s kimono business. The collection debuted as the finale of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in Tokyo. Yoshikimono was later invited to open Amazon Fashion Week Tokyo 2017 S/S.

Also in 2015, the Yoshiki Channel was launched on the NicoNico platform, where it is currently the #1 artist channel.

In 2016, the X Japan documentary We Are X premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, where it was awarded the Special Jury Award for Best Editing. The film went on to win awards at SXSW before its nationwide U.S. theatrical release, and has continued to garner critical acclaim with premieres around the world and invitations to over 20 international film festivals.

Also in 2016, Yoshiki founded the rock festival Visual Japan Summit with over 50 bands performing for sold-out audiences of 100,000 fans over 3 nights in Japan.

That same year, Yoshiki made history by becoming the first-ever artist to be honored with the “Asian Icon Award” at the Classic Rock Awards.

In 2017, Yoshiki performed two sold-out concerts at New York’s Carnegie Hall with the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra as part of the Yoshiki Classical Tour, which also included performances in Tokyo, Osaka, and Hong Kong.

Later in 2017, X Japan headlined London’s Wembley Arena in March and performed 6 historic acoustic concerts in Osaka and Tokyo for 70,000 fans in July.

The We Are X Original Soundtrack claimed the #1 position on the UK Rock Chart, Top 30 on the UK Albums Chart, #3 on the UK Soundtrack Chart, and earned the #1 spot in 9 countries on iTunes.

Following the We Are X U.S. Blu-ray release, the film was chosen as iTunes “Editor’s Choice” and Amazon’s “Indie Pick of the Week” and broke into the Top 3 of the iTunes Documentary chart.

Beyond music, Yoshiki has his own Visa Card and MasterCard issued by one of the largest Japanese banks. The legendary Stan Lee created a super hero comic book based on Yoshiki titled Blood Red Dragon, and, for the first time, a Hello Kitty product line was named after a person – "Yoshikitty."

X Japan made their Coachella debut in 2018, and will perform three concerts at Makuhari Messe in September 2018 for 100,000 fans. Yoshiki is finalizing the band’s first new studio album in over 21 years.